Posted on 11/23/2006 9:21:01 AM PST by pabianice
(This article is instructive as to the depth and breadth of anti-gun hysteria resident in Deep Blue Massachusetts.)
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Auburn incident was accidental
AUBURN, MA — A 12-year-old Auburn Middle School student has admitted to police he accidentally dropped two .22-caliber bullets from his pocket Tuesday morning prompting a search and two-hour precautionary lockdown of the Swanson Road school.
Police Chief Andrew J. Sluckis Jr. said the student, who went to the police station with his father and talked to Detective James Lyman Tuesday night, will be summoned to Worcester Juvenile Court to face two charges of possession of ammunition without a firearm identification card.
“The student and his father contacted the Auburn Police Department Detective Bureau, and the student admitted and took responsibility for bringing the .22-caliber bullets into the school,” Chief Sluckis said yesterday morning.
Chief Sluckis said the student got the bullets from his father, who has an FID card. Chief Sluckis did not know the circumstances by which the bullets were brought to school.
Chief Sluckis said the youth, who is not being identified because of his age, told police he didn’t realize he had the bullets with him and they accidentally fell out of his pocket. One bullet was found in a first-floor boy’s restroom and the second round was found in a hallway leading up to the second floor.
Both rounds were found by students and turned over to their teachers, who contacted Principal Ann O’Leary Ortiz, who called police, Superintendent Helene Skrzyniarz said yesterday.
The discovery of the bullets that can be used in either a handgun or rifle led to a search of approximately 600 students and their lockers, as well as the two-hour lockdown in which students remained in their homerooms.
“One positive thing that came out of this was that no contraband was found in any of the lockers,” said Chief Sluckis, who defined contraband as weapons or drugs.
Ms. Skrzyniarz said she was “absolutely” pleased that no contraband was found in the student lockers.
Chief Sluckis, who met yesterday morning with Ms. Skrzyniarz and Mrs. Ortiz, said a person convicted of possessing ammunition without an FID card could face a year in prison and a $500 fine.
“Since he has no criminal record, I would not expect the court to be too heavy-handed,” Chief Sluckis said.
Mrs. Ortiz described the student as being “a nice kid and not anything close to being a problem in school,” Chief Sluckis said.
Nevertheless, he said the student could be facing some discipline from the School Department and Ms. Skrzyniarz said that likely would happen.
“I’m sure there will be consequences at the school level as well,” she said.
The student was not at school yesterday, Chief Sluckis said.
“His father made the decision to keep him out of school,” the chief said.
After the search was completed, students went to lunch and finished the rest of their school day as well as after-school activities, Ms. Skrzyniarz said. Mrs. Ortiz and Assistant Principal John Giodano talked with students at their tables during lunch to explain what had occurred, she added. Mrs. Ortiz also sent letters to the students’ parents and guardians detailing the situation, the superintendent said.
Ms. Skrzyniarz, who returned telephone calls yesterday to four parents who left messages for her on Tuesday, said she went to the school yesterday to see how the students were doing.
“I wanted to see how they were weathering the incident,” she said.
Students were dismissed early yesterday for the Thanksgiving Day holiday.
Ms. Skrzyniarz said she finished a meeting she was in and arrived at the school about 10 minutes after hearing what had happened. She said by the time she arrived about 10 to 12 “state and mostly local” police officers had arrived.
“It was busy at the school,” she said. “It was extremely quiet, extremely controlled,” she said.
Both Chief Sluckis and Ms. Skrzyniarz said the search and lockdown that was heavily covered by Boston television and radio stations, was justified.
“If we didn’t take any action we would have been negligent,” Chief Sluckis said.
Sounds like chemical castration is in order for this savage inhuman beast.
Keep in mind that the search and lockdown was done before the boy came forward and admitted ownership of the rounds.
As much as I hate this state I live in and all the anti-firearms BS and hysteria here...my opinion is that the LEOs acted appropriately given the information they had at the time.
Judges just can't read simple late 18th century English anymore.
"“The people have a right to keep and bear arms for the common defense. Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, Article 17."
A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. Amendment II, Constitution for the United States. (version from Library of Congress, Statutes at Large, 1st Congress, 1st Session.
"-- Chief Sluckis, who met yesterday morning with Ms. Skrzyniarz and Mrs. Ortiz, said a person convicted of possessing ammunition without an FID card could face a year in prison and a $500 fine. --"
This case would be a great opportunity to fight the constitutionality of this 'law'.. -- Where is the NRA when we need them?
For TWO(2) .22 cartridges.
Oh Boy... Sigh.
Actually they might. Not because of the .22 rounds. But because of being subject to such indignities as a personal search, when they had not done anything at all, and no one had done anything truly wrong. No harm was intended, no harm was caused, thus no real crime (malum in se) had been committed.
Do you really contend that a couple of .22 rimfire rounds are 'dangerous' enough to justify the search & lockdown?
Your knowledge is extremely limited, either in time or place.
Many schools had rifle ranges. Mine did, but a little before my time, by the time I got there (1964) it had been converted for other uses. (My Dad went there too!).
In other places it was routine for kids to bring their rifles or shotguns to school, to allow a bit of plinking or hunting before or after school.
I never took a weapon to school, but I did ride down a major arterial street with a shotgun across the handlebars. This was in the second largest city in the state .
My Highschool had an armory for the JROTC. LOL
No I do not. Two rounds by themselves are not what I would consider dangerous to the point of a lockdown and search. That would make no sense even in this loony bin of a Commonwealth.
The possibility of someone finding more and mishandling them was not why the lock down and search was initiated.
I'm certain that the authorities were not sure if they had someone inside the school hunkered down awaiting the next bell to release students from class.
Someone who had happened to drop a couple of rounds of ammo from his ample supply. At the time, this possibility had to have been what motivated them to lockdown and search the premises.
Would you have taken the chance that this was not the case?
There was a time that the rifle team bought their arms to school, or hunters fo afterschool use. The weapons have remain relatively the same, but the vaklues the teachers instill have not. And that's the "root cause" of the problem.
In some places that would result in school being locked down on a weekly basis. Look at it this way, would some wacko out to harm students, staff or teachers equip themselves with a .22? Get real.
There, fixed that puppy.
No I do not. Two rounds by themselves are not what I would consider dangerous to the point of a lockdown and search. That would make no sense even in this loony bin of a Commonwealth.
The possibility of someone finding more and mishandling them was not why the lock down and search was initiated.
Thanks for your agreement.
I'm certain that the authorities were not sure if they had someone inside the school hunkered down awaiting the next bell to release students from class. Someone who had happened to drop a couple of rounds of ammo from his ample supply.
At the time, this possibility had to have been what motivated them to lockdown and search the premises.
Would you have taken the chance that this was not the case?
As principle, I would never have called in the cops to begin with, and imo, both school and law authorities overreacted in trying to purchase a little temporary safety.
Those who give up our essential liberties because of imagined dangers are far more dangerous than armed madmen. -- In fact they are [gov't] armed madmen.
FMCDH(BITS)
Possibly overreacted. Possibly.
In my estimation, they weren't trying to purchase a little temporary safety. They were preparing to get assets in place should a situation arise where students and faculty could have been put at grave risk.
I don't totally agree with the level of the reaction by the LEOs...but I do understand why they did it. That is all I am saying.
Also...a .22 calibre handgun or rifle might not have been the only weapon in play. They didn't know.
Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were heavily armed during their little foray.
Because of them we have these knee jerk types of reaction...especially in Blue Country.
Most likely nothing will come of this. However, given the rage with which the general public attacks school systems when a Columbine like tragedy occurs, if ammunition is found in a school, then it has to be investigated. The bullets could have been dropped while loading a gun, and other students could have been involved, before the investigation found out otherwise. I think it was perfectly prudent to investigate the incident with seriousness.
Of course, given that you and your friends were raised properly, none of you ever considered shooting up the school. Sadly, that isn't always the case now with the prevailing hip-hop culture.
Only 65 posts before this incident was held up as another reason for homeschooling. Amazing!
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